They say “Catches win matches” but such has been the depravity of fielding with the increase of competitiveness in international cricket that even single run saved on the field is applauded enthusiastically and cheered with equal dementia to scoring one. Although fielding has been a major attribute of the game since its inception but the importance given in fielding is much more in the contemporary days than it used to be about two decades ago.
The South African and the Aussies thanks to their superior physical attributes have always had the upper hand over the subcontinent fielders but in the recent days, the fielding of India has improved dramatically. With Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane the Indian outfit has improved in the field significantly.
These days fielding is one of the important elements needed in a cricketer and over the years some of the individuals have certainly made fielding a treat to watch with their agility and acrobatic catches. Today we have a look at 5 fielders whose USP was their fielding.
#5 Eknath Solkar
Eknath Solkar was a multi-talented cricketer and had the ability to bowl with the new ball and spin with the old, and one who also batted with grit and determination. He was a mindboggling close-in fielder as well and was regarded as “The Jonty Rhodes of his era”. Solkar played a vital role in the success of India’s famous spin quartet with his impeccable catches at short leg and silly point.
In the infamous Lord’s Test in 1974 where India got bundled out for their lowest ever Test score of 42, Solkar scored 18 and was the only batsman who reached double figures. A hooked six was the highlight of his innings after getting hit on the head by an English paceman on the previous ball.
The risk factor heightened when Solkar stood at the silly point region of Chandrasekhar who was capable of bowling unplayable deliveries and follow it up with a rank long hop. Solkar’s 53 catches came barring helmet, shin guards and other protective gears of the modern generation. He was a fearless man who used to shout “catch it” after the ball would ricochet off his body from a full blooded shot.
He is famous for snatching catches from batsmen’s shoelace and had an amazing sense of anticipation. Many of his catches cannot be considered as a chance for most of the other fielders. He didn’t only anticipate but converted them into catches .
The catch Solkar took of Alan Knott in the 1971 Oval Test is ranked among the classics of all time much like Jonty Rhodes’ run out of Inzamam-ul-Haq in the 1992 World Cup.
#4 Paul Collingwood
Former England skipper Paul Collingwood would rank as one of the finest fielders of his generation and was an acrobatic fielder at the backward point position. He plucked catches out of thin air and handled his troops well as a captain, leading by example on the field. Apart from his familiar backward point position, Collingwood used to field in point and gully as well.
He has truly set a benchmark for youngsters in the English side as far as fielding is concerned. His diving and acrobatic agility set him apart as a world-class fielder.
Besides being a brilliant fielder Collingwood was good middle order batsman and more than a decent medium pace bowler. He scored a brilliant 206 against Australia in the 2006-07 Ashes series which was the first double century by an English batsman in Australia for 78 years. A series of three match winning performances, in fact, earned him many accolades from media and other cricketers as he played an instrumental role in England winning the 2006-07 Commonwealth Bank series in Australia.
Collingwood was the 1st and only captain to lift an ICC Trophy for his country as he led his troops to a sensational victory in 2010 T20 World Cup.
#3 Kieron Pollard
The big man from Trinidad is one of the greatest fielders of the current generation and has the ability to take some inhumane catches and save a boundary literally from nowhere. His big reach enables him to cover large ground in less time and save some improbable boundaries. He has been a great outfielder for every team he played in his career so far.
Pollard took one of the finest catches in history in the 2014 IPL. With Kevon Cooper’s hit seemingly sailing over Polly, the huge Trinidadian leaped miraculously to pluck the ball out of thin air but as his body began to twist him around Pollard threw the ball over his shoulder before turning on his landing foot forcefully pushing himself back into play to take one of the most amazing and fantastic catches you would wish to see.
Apart from being a fantastic fielder, Pollard is a hard hitting lower middle order batsman who has played some tremendous innings for his country and franchise teams. The 29-year-old made his name for himself in the 2009 Champions League T20 when he led his side Trinidad and Tobago to a famous win against New South Wales Blues. He is a very intelligent medium pace bowler and provides an ideal balance to the side especially in T20s.
#2 Mohammed Kaif
The man from Allahabad was nothing but a sensation in the field. He along with Yuvraj Singh took the fielding standards to new heights in Indian cricket and made India a strong fielding unit in the years to come. Kaif would be positioned in the covers and Yuvraj at the point and it was very difficult for the batsmen to get the ball past those acrobatic fielders. The standard of Indian fielding improved by leaps and bounds when the duo was out there in the field.
Kaif has taken some mind-boggling catches in his career and also has a high percentage of direct hits initiating in many crucial run outs. He was like a livewire on the field and grasped some exceptional catches which would have been impossible for most people. The catch against Pakistan in the 1st ODI in 2004 at Karachi is fondly remembered by the Indian fans as it helped the Men in Blue win a nerve-wracking thriller.He has taken a total of 55 catches in ODI cricket and 14 catches in Tests.
Kaif was also the central figure when India won the 2002 Natwest Trophy in England under the captaincy of Sourav Ganguly. Chasing a mammoth 326 to win in the Final, India floundered and was staring down the barrel at a score of 146/5 when the pair of Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif joined in the middle. The duo slowly started hitting boundaries on regular intervals and started bringing back India into the match.
Yuvraj fell with India around 60 runs away from England’s total. Despite the downfall of his partner, Kaif continued his heroics and took India past the finishing line. It was one of the greatest victories in Indian cricket and captain Sourav Ganguly famously waved his shirt standing at the Lord’s balcony.
#1 Jonty Rhodes
You would find it difficult to judge the greatest batsman of all time. Some might say, Don Bradman, some Sachin Tendulkar and some Lara. Even in the case of bowlers you would find it hard to single out one between many like Wasim Akram, Curtly Ambrose, Shane Warne, Muthiah Muralitharan etc but as far as fielding is concerned there is no doubt that Jonty Rhodes is the greatest fielder of all time simply because of his consistent performances as a fielder.
In the 1992 World Cup, Jonty ran out Inzamam-ul-Haq in a dramatic fashion by literally flying from point to dismantle the stumps. One of the next day newspapers read, “Is it a bird, is it a plane? No it is Jonty Rhodes.” Many people would argue that batting and bowling are the most important attributes needed in a cricketer but a fielder of Jonty’s caliber made the playing XI solely as a fielder.
Rhodes left a huge impact on every young cricketer and literally revolutionized the art of fielding. He was arguably the only man who could have fielded virtually in any position. He broke into the South African set up purely as a fielder in a side packed with superstars.
Besides being an extraordinary fielder, Rhodes was a useful lower middle-order batsman and his record proves it. The acrobatic fielder scored at an average of 35 both in Tests and ODIs.
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